The Last Confrontation
by The Wonderless Wizard of Oz
Summary: For years, Kasumi has pursued Victor Donovan for the torment he put her family and clan through. Now, two years after the events of DOA5, finally they meet face to face-over a lunch table of all places. With her quest for vengeance finally at an end, she will get the answers she seeks. But will they lead to even more questions?


The Last Confrontation

Greenwich, Connecticut. December 2rd, 2020

It was the middle of the day, although beneath an overcast sky, it was impossible to tell without a watch. On this exceptionally cold day, a sleek black BMW glided through the sparsely populated streets lined with expensive country manors. In the passenger seat of this luxurious vehicle, sat Kasumi. Former Mugen Tenshin ninja, and current head of DOATEC's secret service unit. At the wheel was Bayman. A Russian mercenary that often took jobs for the newly reformed DOATEC, and had a personal stake their purpose for being here. Almost two whole years had passed since the 5th Dead or Alive Tournament, which ended in the destruction of a project alpha lab, run by M.I.S.T. An offshoot company comprised of those loyal to DOATEC's former chairman, Victor Donovan Since then, DOATEC waged a long, secret war, with Kasumi on the frontlines. For two long years, they whittled away at M.I.S.T, seizing or destroying their infrastructure the moment it was found. A month ago, they had seemingly cornered the illusive organisation to a large facility hidden away in the Australian outback. The ensuing battle was hard fought, and although the secret service paid a high price in lives, it ended with the death of Donovan's son, known only as Rig. M.I.S.T was seemingly destroyed. But there were still unanswered questions. Where was Donovan hiding now? And what about the mysterious backer M.I.S.T had colluded with?

Then, a week ago. Kasumi received an email reading: _'It's time for us to finish this story. Come alone to this address. And I'll give you the answers you seek.'_ There was no doubt in Kasumi's mind as to whom authored that email. After years of hardships brought on by that man's ambition, a final confrontation with Donovan. The only certainty with that man, was that there were no certainties, and there was a debate over how to approach him. Helena Douglas, the current CEO of DOATEC, wanted to deploy the secret service again. Kasumi, fearing that Donovan would see it coming and slip away again, wanted to entertain his request for her coming alone. They reached a compromise: She would travel with Bayman(whom also had a grudge to settle with Donovan). Neither of them spoke a word to each other as they drove to their destination. Finally, they arrived at set of retractable gates flanked by two stone lions atop a red brick wall. As they pulled into the driveway, the gates yielded, but only after a few seconds worth of delay.

"He's watching…." Bayman muttered, eyeing off the mounted camera as they passed through.

The estate beyond the wall was nothing extraordinary when matched up to Connecticut's higher market standards. The building itself was a two story manor, coloured mainly off-white. While It had been re-purposed for modern use, the building was probably colonial era in origin. Around the snow-covered garden, there were a few pagolas and hedgewalls neatly organised around an otherwise plain yard. The main outdoor feature, was a fountain in front of the manor. Adorned with angels and cherubs, once flowing water had clearly frozen over. The BMW slowly came to a stop next to the fountain, and the two of them stepped out of the car. Kasumi sported a brown leather jacket over a white turtleneck, blue jeans, and brown leather boots, while Bayman wore a black and white 3 piece suit, with the exception of a thick black coat replacing a traditional suit jacket. Both of them were dressed for the season, though in Kasumi's case, it was purely to blend into the crowd. The cold never really bothered her that much. Silently, they walked up to the main entrance, and rang the doorbell.

"Shall we walk into the gates of hell one more time, Comrade?" Bayman asked.

"Finally, we're going to end this. For everyone he's made suffer, but….." Kasumi responded, as she kept her eyes on the doors. "But something about this feels different."

Before Bayman could further investigate on her words, the doors opened, revealing a young woman dressed in a black conservative maid's outfit.

"We're here for Mr. Alan." Bayman greeted through slightly gritted teeth.

"Of course. He's been expecting you. Right this way." The maid said, leading them into the manor proper.

Most of the interior resembled the colonial era of the manor itself, despite the place being well lit. Almost all of the furniture assembled in the main foyer featured varnished mahogany. The maid led them through a hallway to their left, decorated with framed pieces of classic art. They passed several rooms on the way, before finally being lead through the doorway at the end.

"Mr. Alan, your guests are here." The maid announced, with a bow.

"Thank you Selena. You may finish early today." The man she was addressing replied.

"Thank you, Mr. Alan.

"Oh, I sent you a very important email. Be sure to check it when you get home." The man added.

"Will do, Mr. Alan." The maid replied with a smile, as she left the room.

The space Kasumi and Bayman found themselves in appeared to be a dining hall. Unlike the rooms they had seen so far, this room was surprising well-lit by day light. If the windows hadn't been fogged up by winter, one might have gotten a decent view of the yard. In the centre of the room, rested a long clothed table, displaying a full course roast turkey, accompanied by cooked potatoes, assorted vegetables, freshly cooked bread, red wine, and a few other dishes Kasumi didn't immediately recognise. Two chairs were arranged at either side of the man sat at the end of the table. He was dressed in a 3 piece suit similar to bayman, yet far more elegant. Although his face suggested he was at the end of his middle ages, his physique closely resembled Bayman's. He wore his white hair slicked back, while his chin revealed a heavy stubble to it.

"Donovan…" Kasumi muttered.

"Welcome, Kasumi. It's been too long." He replied, giving her a warm smile.

His smile dropped as his eyes moved towards Bayman. "I suspected Helena wouldn't have really allowed you to visit me alone. Still, I'd hoped that she might have come personally instead of sending a guard dog with you."

"Have you forgotten so easily what you did to me, you bastard?" Bayman instantly bit back. "That was a lot of money you screwed me out of. And you tried to have me killed!"

"You and a dozen other mercenaries. The only difference is that you survived." Donovan blankly stated.

"I should kill you right here!" Bayman sneered. His hand reaching for his silenced pistol beneath his coat.

"Kill me, and deny Kasumi the answers she's spent her life seeking." Donovan spoke again, freezing Bayman in his tracks. "If you have any respect for your comrade, you'll allow me to breathe a while longer."

Bayman briefly glanced at Kasumi, whom seemed to be strangely relaxed. She gave Bayman a nod, and with a frustrated grunt, he relaxed his stance.

"Now then, shall we discuss this over lunch?" Donovan suggested, as both Kasumi and Bayman seated themselves down at the table.

Kasumi filled her plate, as she processed the events unfolding before her. Much of her life was spent in pursuit of this man to avenge her family and clan. In her mind, she pictured this confrontation would have gone down with one last superweapon made in her visage. Or perhaps with Donovan himself. She imagined the fight to be her most difficult yet, before finally standing over him as he either begged for his life, or gave way to insane ramblings. And yet here she was. Face to face with the one man responsible for her suffering, over a roast lunch. There was still the possibility that her meal was drugged. But then maybe not. As they ate, she noticed Bayman watching Donovan like a hawk. He clearly didn't trust him. And he had every reason not to. Donovan was well and truly aware that both Kasumi and Bayman were here for his life, so why this? It surely had to be a trap. There was no way that Donovan would just give himself up like this…

"I know you have a lot of questions, Kasumi." Donovan broke the brief silence that fell over the room.

"Why?" Was Kasumi's question.

"A vague question. Do you wish do know my motivations for my actions, or why you specifically were chosen?" Donovan asked back after swallowing a mouthful of turkey.

"No… you wish to know everything. Well then…." He sighed, as he prepared to give the young shinobi the answers only he could give her.

"My motivations are quite simple. Cliché even. I wanted to give birth to a new world. A better one that knows only prosperity and peace, and is free from conflict, and the suffering it brings."

"By creating a weapon that might have plunged the world into deeper chaos?!" Kasumi interrupted.

"Such is the cycle of life and death. The world I wanted could only rise from the ashes of the old one." Donovan spoke, before looking directly at Kasumi. "You would have been my phoenix."

A wave of discomfort washed over Kasumi as Donovan looked over, causing the shinobi to instinctively swallow a mouthful of wine to calm her nerves. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Bayman's hand resting over a butter knife. No doubt he was using every bit of this willpower to keep himself from plunging that knife into Donovan's throat. Over the course of her long fight against Donovan, one obvious question haunted her over all others: Why her? As though he could read her mind, Donovan started speaking again….

"The weapon I hoped to create would have replaced nukes in the form of an invincible soldier that possessed unfathomable power, but clear of conscience. That was the purpose behind The Dead or Alive World Combat Tournament. To find the perfect template to mould my soldier from. Your clan in particular held a lot of interest, so I manipulated certain events to ensure your clan's involvement."

"By having Raidou almost kill my brother?!" Kasumi interrupted.

"Raidou was nothing more than a savage with too much power. We both know full well that he would have turned on your clan anyway. Had it not been for me, he might have very well killed Hayate. So in a sense, I saved your brother's life." Donovan replied, casually sipping on his wine.

"But I digress." He continued, in the absence of a reply from Kasumi. "Raidou's involvement assured that those seeking revenge would find their way to the Tournament. And that's where I discovered you."

"Then why me?" Kasumi finally asked, with a clear tone of anger in her voice. "Hayate's stronger than me. Hayabusa is stronger than me. If it's a weapon you wanted, there were those stronger than me!"

Donovan merely chuckled in response. "After all this time, you still really believe you're inferior to them? No my dear. You are far stronger than even The Dragon Ninja. Otherwise, we would not be having this conversation right now."

His compliment caused Kasumi's cheeks to flash red. Once again, the shinobi lacked a response, and instead opted to take a bit out of a roast potato. Right now, she was longing for that fight she'd imagined. At least there, she could fight him on an equal footing. But in a war of words, she was well out of her league. True to his manipulative reputation, Victor Donovan had her soul exposed, and she had no way to truly fight back. She took another glance at Bayman, who simply ate in silence. Like her, the mercenary was also out of his element here.

"Yes. You had the strength. But you also had something more. A certain purity of spirit. It's why it had to be you." Donovan explained. "You were the one I had to model my weapon from. And you were the one I had to surpass with it."

After another sip of wine, Donovan continued. "But, after so many tries, I now realise that surpassing you is impossible. And that's why we're here now. I accept my defeat. You have truly won." He finished, offering Kasumi a genuinely warm smile.

"Won?!" Kasumi bit back with a raised voice. "This doesn't feel like winning. I've lost friends and family through all of this. To avenge the wrongs you've committed against them, I had to sacrifice my place with them! All I have 'won', is my exile. While they won't hunt me down anymore, I can never go back to them!" Kasumi berated Donovan, as a tear ran down her cheek.

"And if you're still holding yourself subject to their archaic values, then it seems you have a lot to learn about family." Donovan replied, shaking his head. "Tell me. How many people serve under you in DOATEC's secret service? 2000? 3000? More?"

"Why does that even matter?" Kasumi responded.

"Because even after all you've done for that clan, they're far too glued to their concepts of honour to welcome you back. And yet, Helena's DOATEC has accepted you into their fold, and have granted you power and authority you may never have even dreamed of within the Mugen Tenshin."

"You continue to stubbornly view your clan that abandoned you for trying to avenge them as your family." Donovan continued. "But maybe once your quest comes to a close here, you'll begin to accept that DOATEC is your true family."

Once again, Kasumi was left floored by Victor's words. This time though, she didn't feel the anger she previously harboured. With his words he had completely disarmed her of her rage. And she couldn't hate him for it, because ultimately, he was right. Her brother and sister, and even Ryu Hayabusa had become nothing more than distant allies over the course of the past few years. As she watched Donovan calmly get up from his chair, and walk towards the window beside him, she begun to think about the people within DOATEC. She thought of Helena Douglas, Kokoro, Zack, Marie Rose, Honoka, Bayman, and countless others she fought alongside. For a long time, she desired to finally return to the Mugen Tenshin. Though she didn't recognise it at first, felt it less and less. With Donovan's revelation, she finally let go of her desire, and truly accepted that her home was now with DOATEC. She turned around to Bayman. Unlike her, he hadn't dropped his resentment against Donovan. He noticed Kasumi's change in demeanour, and seemed visibly annoyed with her. She could understand why, but it was hardly relevant right now.

"Kasumi." Donovan spoke up, breaking her from her train of thought. "Do you still think I'm evil?"

"I used to think that." Kasumi answered, as she got up from her chair, to stand behind Donovan. "But now, I'm not so sure. Maybe you are. Or maybe you you're just misguided. I can see now that you have a strange sense of honour. One that even I can learn to respect.

"I'm relieved to hear that." Donovan spoke, still gazing out of the window. "One way or another, I'll atone for my sins today. Maybe you'll kill me. Or maybe the Mercenary will. Or maybe…."

It was at this point, Kasumi remembered the mysterious backer of M.I.S.T they discovered during their campaign against them.

"The G Corporation." Kasumi asked. "Who are they?"

"A group with a lot more power and influence than DOATEC has. They backed my research with a blank check in return for exclusive use to its results. In hindsight, I should've asked more questions." Donovan began to explain.

"I'm unsure of who's officially running it, but I learnt that even the president of the United States in on their payroll. That piece of information cost Christie her life. God rest her soul." Donovan sighed.

"Looking back on it now, I can see that I was being used to keep you guys from finding out about them. They will be one of the world's biggest threats. I say one of them, because during our skirmish, The Mishima Zaibatsu has grown exponentially. The last I heard, they've silently taken over Japan in a coup." He revealed.

As Kasumi processed all this new information, Donovan turned to face her. On the exterior, he kept his composure, but Kasumi caught a glimpse of the fear behind his eyes.

"There's a war coming. One that will engulf the entire world. And unlike my intentions, I fear that those behind the G Corporation and the Mishima Zaibatsu have no interest in building a better world. Kasumi…"

Donovan was never able to finish his sentence. Neither Kasumi nor Bayman caught the glint of a rifle scope beyond the yard of Donovan's home. And there was no crack from the weapon firing. Their only warning, was the glass smashing behind Donovan. Instinctively, Kasumi and Bayman hit the ground for cover. As she looked up, she saw that Donovan was still on his feet, looking down at a large hold in the left of his chest. With a sigh, his legs gave way, and he fell backwards. Instantly, Kasumi shot forth to catch him. She looked down at her long-time adversary, who was now dying in her arms.

"Heh, to think that my final moments would be spent in your embrace." He said up to her, giving a smile as his voice weakened. "….Far more than I deserve…. Thank you…." He trailed off, as finally, Victor Donovan finally succumbed to death.

She was expecting to find an egotistical maniac hell bent on destroying the world for power. She found her egotistical maniac, yet she found one with lofty values who conducted himself with grace and civility. She expected Donovan's death to grant her the relief she sought, and yet it was his words that brought her relief in the end. Only for that relief to be shattered upon his death, with the revelation the he too, got caught up in someone else's game. And with Donovan now dead in her arms, she was unsure of what what to think. Or how to feel.

"Kasumi!" Bayman broke her thoughts again.

Bayman opened his hand reveal the bullet that took Donovan's life. She took it from him, and carefully examined it. She gasped when she noticed an engraving on the bullet.-the insignia of the Mishima Zaibatsu.

"What happens now?" Bayman asked, his anger now also replaced with confusion.

"We need to go to Japan." Kasumi replied. "Hayate and the others are in danger."


End file.
